Detailed Explanation of Sow Raising and Management Techniques and Methods

Making Sows Farrow During the Day

At 8-9 am 1-2 days before the sow is due to farrow, inject 1-2 ml of cloprostenol injection into the neck muscle of the sow; this can make 98.2% of sows farrow during the daytime on the following day, and the piglet survival rate rises from 90% before the trial to more than 98%.

Making Sows Farrow in Spring and Autumn

Scheduling sow farrowing in spring and autumn, avoiding the severe cold of winter and the intense heat of summer, can raise the piglet survival rate and achieve 5 litters in 2 years. The first litter can be arranged for mating in November-December and farrowing in March-April of the following year; the second litter can be arranged for mating in May-June and farrowing in September-October.

Clever Calculation of the Sow's Expected Farrowing Date

The normal gestation period of a sow is 108-120 days, averaging 114 days. The method for calculating the expected farrowing date is: add 3 months, then 3 weeks and 3 days, to the mating date. For example, if the sow's mating date is April 10, the expected farrowing date is 4+3=7 (month), 10+21 (3 weeks)+3 (days)=34 days, that is, August 3.

Early Pregnancy Diagnosis in Sows

At 3-4 weeks after mating, press with the thumb and index finger on the back between the 9th thoracic vertebra and the 2nd lumbar vertebra; if the spine arches slightly, the sow is pregnant, and if the spine is sunken, she is not pregnant.

Increasing the Sow's Farrowing Rate

From 3 days after weaning to the estrus period, feed each sow daily 400 mg each of compound vitamin B and carotene, and 200 mg of vitamin E; after mating, halve the dose and continue feeding for 3 weeks; each litter can produce 2-2 more piglets.

Artificial Estrus Induction in Sows

For sows that have long failed to come into estrus, take 20 ml of boar semen and slowly infuse it into the sow's uterus with an insemination tube, while constantly rotating and moving the insemination tube back and forth, and at the same time sprinkle a small amount of semen on the sow's snout. Strengthen feeding, and mating can occur after about 4 days. Alternatively, for sows weighing 75-100 kg, inject 100 units of chorionic gonadotropin into the muscle, or inject 5 ml of pregnant mare serum subcutaneously; generally estrus occurs in 4-6 days.

Promoting Milk Production in Sows

Rinse the placenta of the sow after farrowing clean with clear water, cut it into small pieces 4-5 cm long and 2-3 cm wide, simmer over a gentle fire for 1-2 hours, mix the fetal membranes together with the broth into thin porridge, and feed it to the sow twice a day starting from the 2nd day after farrowing until it is finished. For sows that have always been short of milk, decoct 30 g of akebia stem, 20 g of angelica, and 30 g of astragalus into a decoction and feed it together with the cooked fetal membranes; the effect is excellent.